Bibi’s game plan – CounterPunch.org

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may not have predicted October 7. However, the Hamas massacre that day provided him with a welcome opportunity to execute a long-prepared Israeli plan. His steps are aimed at creating Greater Israel; destroy Hamas, Hezbollah and other adversaries in Iraq, Syria and Yemen; and suppress Iran’s expanding nuclear program. Over the past 12 months, this plan has been successively implemented in four main locations: Gaza, the West Bank (and East Jerusalem), Lebanon and now Iran.

1. Gaza.

After October 7, Netanyahu promised to eliminate Hamas, a promise most of his military advisers considered unattainable. Reaffirming Israel’s “right to self-defense,” the prime minister and his war cabinet proceeded to raze the Gaza Strip and decimate its population through ruthless bombings, rocket attacks, and sniper attacks. With the death toll rising, which now stands at over 42,000 (not counting the thousands missing and presumed dead in the rubble), Gazans have also witnessed attacks on journalists and health workers. Hospitals, schools and mosques were not spared as forced evacuations moved civilians into so-called “safe zones” that often became scenes of massacre using US-supplied bombs and rockets.

At the same time, Israel implemented war tactics, a deliberate policy of starvation. The siege declared by Defense Minister Gallant at the beginning of the war largely deprived Palestinians of clean water, food, fuel and essential medical supplies. As a result, Gazans (especially infants and children) are dying from malnutrition and related diseases. Full-scale famine grips the country.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration has pledged unconditional support for Netanyahu and his government. While repeatedly calling for a ceasefire and the return of hostages held by Hamas, the United States continues to arm the IDF with lethal weapons, including two-ton bombs and white phosphorus-tipped rockets. Unrestrained militarily and diplomatically, Netanyahu refuses to stop bombing until Hamas surrenders and returns the hostages. Thanks to the uninterrupted supply of weapons, the war continues and innocent civilians continue to die.

2. West Bank.

Encouraged by extremist members of Netanyahu’s cabinet whose stated intention is to ethnically cleanse non-Jews and annex the West Bank, Israeli settlers and the IDF have stepped up their attacks on Palestinian towns and villages. So far, they have murdered over 6,000 residents and imprisoned thousands more. They forced many residents to flee and destroyed their homes and businesses. In both the West Bank and East Jerusalem, Israel’s obvious goal is to force the exodus of Palestinians, as in 1948. Nakba.Central to the vision of “Greater Israel” (stretching “from the river to the sea”) is a Jewish state with approximately seven million Jewish citizens, minus a similar number of Palestinian inhabitants. As the world’s attention focuses on the Gaza Strip (and now Lebanon and Iran), residents are witnessing the destruction of social infrastructure and businesses. Observers say the West Bank is starting to resemble Gaza.

3. Lebanon.

When the Israeli genocide began in Gaza, Hezbollah militias began attacking cities in northern Israel. In solidarity with the Gaza Strip, it pledged to continue these attacks until Israel agrees to a ceasefire. With American weapons flowing to the IDF. Netanyahu had no intention of backing down. Israeli targeted assassinations of top Hamas and Hezbollah leaders, Israeli staging of explosions of communications devices; and his bombing and ground invasion have already cost the lives of over two thousand Lebanese. Hezbollah’s militia has been demoted but continues to put up armed resistance. Regardless of the political outcome, Israel’s war with Lebanon has already caused much destruction in Beirut and elsewhere. How will this war end?

4. Iran.

When Netanyahu addressed a joint session of Congress in 2015, he condemned the then-emerging nuclear deal with Iran, insisting that America withdraw from multilateral negotiations. In fact, the prime minister has never hidden his desire to nip Iran’s imminent nuclear approval in the bud and overthrow the country’s theocratic government. Now, with a significant U.S. naval presence and more than 40,000 troops in the region, Netanyahu can be confident that America will protect Israel.

Iran wanted to avenge the Israeli attack on Tehran in July that killed Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh. However, his rocket fire did little damage and killed only one person. However, Israel promised retaliation. The head of Iran’s armed forces then said that if Israel retaliated, “our response will be more decisive.” The next round of retaliation would likely trigger a major war, drawing in the Americans and providing what Israel’s provocations were intended all along: a pretext to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Israel’s ongoing wars in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon are a precursor to what is possible great war against Iran. Meanwhile, President Biden continues the flow of American weapons into Israel. While he discourages (another “red line”) the bombing of Iran’s nuclear plants, he appears to disagree with possible attacks on Iranian oil facilities.

In short, Bibi’s bloody plan is on track – to destroy the Palestinian population in both Gaza and the West Bank, and to sow fear and chaos among the Lebanese civilian population by bombing suspected Hezbollah facilities. The IDF degraded the military potential of both Hamas and Hezbollah. However, both organizations remain vibrant and will likely regroup and strengthen over time.

By providing Israel with vital weapons, the United States became complicit in both the genocide in Gaza and war crimes in the West Bank and Lebanon. Both Netanyahu and the Biden administration deserve to be held accountable for serious violations of international law and moral norms.